Tag: choices

As the picture shows, I’m not a fashion diva. I tend not follow too many trends, especially if everyone else is following them. I figure I’m either retro or trend-setting myself, depending which way one looks on the time-line, I suppose. I basically have three fashionista rules: cleanliness, comfort, and coverage.

But when it came to what style of sunglasses to wear to view the American Eclipse of 2017, there wasn’t much choice, at least here in my small town. So I shelled out a full dollar for my NASA-approved specs in preparation for the light show.

In my part of the country, we were to get about a 96% solar coverage. It was pretty neat, but enough light still filtered through so that I wasn’t spellbound—the pull of the paperwork on my desk was still there, so I was in and out of the school building for our few minutes of historical phenom.Continue reading “Eclipsed!”

I love the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City. My NYC artist daughter says that the collection there is considerable, and she would know. I’m a particular fan of the antiquities section, Egypt and all that, and Bob always likes to visit the Orientals. Of course, part of the artwork that is preserved has to do with the culture’s endemic religious artifacts, including the stone/metal/wooden idols, some little and some not so little (there’s a Buddha in the stairwell that would not even fit in my house….)

Choices…consequences. If I eat too much chocolate, then I get fat(ter). If I pull the car into the garage too fast like my husband has repeatedly warned me against, then I rip off the mirror, busting the window into a gazillion shards of glass, costing us hundreds of dollars, and having to call my husband to tell him that I pulled the car into the garage too fast…again. You know, things like that.

We live and breathe if/then’s. Of course, we’re in good company–even our stone age ancestors had to learn that fire was good in some ways…and not so good in others.

Here’s one of my fave’s that’s really worth chewing on. It’s a quote from the book of the prophet Isaiah:

“And if you pour out that with which you sustain your own life for the hungry and satisfy the need of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in darkness, and your obscurity and gloom become like the noonday.” (Isaiah 58:10 Amplified Bible)

What do I sustain myself, my very heart and soul with? Okay, money is always a good indicator about where our hearts are, and I’m in total agreement that no matter how little one has, some of it has to be given away to help someone else. But how about the other things “with which I sustain myself”?

A big one for me is time. Is my life so full of chores and projects and responsibilities that I don’t have time to pause and listen to a friend in need? Or is a child’s hug somehow an interruption?

Another one is talent and personal skill set. Can you make music? Sing? Build a wall (or a new drum “cage”, as the case may be in our church)? Can you make people laugh? Cook? Okay, maybe these aren’t the things with which you bring home the bacon, but not everything of true value is recognized on Wall Street.

I think it was St. Augustine that said “men’s souls hang on your gifts”. Jesus, Himself, warns us not to bury what He has given us, but to invest it wisely. IF we pour out (not dribble, by the way) these things to help those in need–not just physically, but emotionally, spiritually, relationally–THEN our own personal clouds begin to dissipate as well. Interesting paradox, this whole “losing my life to find it” thing.

If I get up at 3:30AM to write this post, then I’ll probably need to sleep in. Good thing it’s Saturday….

Say “CHEESE”…(click)

May I have the honor of introducing you to the Creator of vibrant rainbows, redwood forests, and the duckbill platypus? He is not only amazingly creative, terrifyingly awesome, but also incredibly humorous. (And He likes to see you smile....honest.)